


Tuneless

by Ignis_Sassentia



Series: Song of the Soul (A Musical Soulmate AU) [3]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: But it's me so there will probably be some angst in the middle somewhere, M/M, Not having soulmates in a soulmate world, Soulmate AU, This should be ridiculously fluffy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-14
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-04-22 13:46:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14309979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ignis_Sassentia/pseuds/Ignis_Sassentia
Summary: Prompto doesn't have a soulmate, so he's pretty much resigned himself to never having a good romantic relationship. Which makes it incredibly hard when he realizes he has a huge crush on his best friend's bodyguard.Gladio hasn't told anyone he doesn't have a soulmate, either--but he's convinced he can still make a relationship work with the right person. All he can do is hope he can convince Prompto they're the right pair to make it happen.A soulmate AU where romantic soulmates share the same unique melody in their heads, and platonic soulmates have a unique melody/harmony pair. Intertwines withCrescendo, especially for the first few chapters.





	1. Chapter 1

Prompto Argentum didn’t have a soulmate. He’d known it for as long as he could remember. Soulmates were born with unique matching songs in their minds that lasted their whole lives. The closest Prompto ever came was the latest catchy pop song stuck in his head. He’d had twenty years to come to terms with it, and most of the time, it didn’t bother him. But every now and then, it hit _hard_.

Like when Noct had told him that Ignis was going to the train station to pick up his platonic soulmate this afternoon. If stuffy, proper, always-too-busy-to-do-anything-but-work Ignis Scientia had a soulmate, then why didn’t friendly, bubbly, always-too-nice-for-his-own-good Prompto Argentum? It just didn’t seem fair.

Especially when all the talk around the library today was about the children’s librarian who had finally found _her_ soulmate. Honestly, though, the hushed talks about how hard life must be for people without Soul Songs--how could they ever hope to find love if it wasn’t with the perfect match for their soul, after all?--was what _really_ got to him. Sure, he hadn’t had great luck with dates, and he still only had one actual friend, but that didn’t mean he was some hopeless pity case. Did it?

He gritted his teeth and shook the thoughts away as he returned to re-shelving the returned books. _Don’t think about it_ , he told himself. After all, Noctis had never mentioned having a Song, either. And it wasn’t like people without soulmates were some sort of atrocious abnormality. Plenty of people didn’t have a Song. He just...hadn’t heard of any of them who had fulfilling relationships anyway. But they had to exist. Somewhere. And maybe, if he got _really_ lucky, Prompto could be one of them.

“Uh. ‘Scuse me,” a low, gruff voice said behind him.

Prompto jumped, nearly dropping the book he’d been shelving, and whipped around. The guy behind him was freaking _huge_. He wore a ratty old hoodie and a ballcap that shadowed most of his face, but there was no denying his height and the muscles he obviously had under the sweatshirt. There was something vaguely familiar about him that Prompto couldn’t place, so he just flashed his best customer service grin. “Heyaz. How can I help?”

The giant cleared his throat and rubbed at the back of his neck. “Yeah, uh, I’m looking for the historical fiction section? You guys rearranged since the last time I was here.”

“Oh! Yeah, sure. Right. This way.” Prompto dropped the book in his hand back onto the cart and gestured expansively for the other man to follow him. He wove his way through the stacks toward the back of the library, where they’d moved the historical and speculative fiction sections last month.

“Hey, you’re Noct’s friend, right? Prompto something?” The giant asked in an undertone as they threaded their way through the stacks.

“Yeah, I--” Prompto glanced back at him in surprise and cut himself off as his brain ground to a halt. It wasn’t really a secret that he was best friends with the Crown Prince--the tabloids had kind of made sure of that ages ago--but not many people referred to Noctis by his name, let alone a nickname. That combined with a better angle to see the guy’s face and Prompto’s stomach twisted as he actually recognized his companion. “Oh, hey, you’re his bodyguard, aren’t you? The one he’s always complaining about.”

The giant let out a low, gruff chuckle and rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, that’s me. Name’s Gladio. In case you forgot.”

“No, yeah, of course I didn’t forget,” Prompto lied awkwardly as he dodged around a cluster of armchairs occupied by Insomnia U students. “Just...been a while since I saw you, you know? Like, we’re always hanging at Noct’s place now, so it’s not like you’ve been around.”

That earned him another soft chuckle. “Yeah, guess that’s true. How long’ve you worked here? Didn’t Noct say you were a dog walker or something?”

Prompto shrugged but laughed uncomfortably. “I am. Kind of got a handful of jobs here and there, you know? Gotta make enough to get by somehow!”

Gladio grunted quietly in response.

“Historical fiction,” Prompto proclaimed in a voice just a tiny touch too loud for a normal library tone as soon as he could break the awkward silence. He coughed uncomfortably and tossed his big companion his customer service grin again. “Uh. I gotta get back to work, but let me know if I can help with anything else, ‘k?”

“Yeah, thanks.” Gladio gave him a little smile in return and brushed past him to get to the books.

Prompto hesitated a moment, watching the giant peruse the shelves, feeling like he should maybe say something else. He jumped when his phone let out a shrill “kweh” from his pocket at the exact same time a more subdued beep sounded from Gladio’s hoodie.

“Nice alert tone.” Gladio chuckled as he fished his phone out and glanced at the screen.

Ducking his head self-consciously, Prompto pulled out his own phone and quickly turned it on vibrate. He could have sworn he’d done it before his shift started, but apparently not. That done, he pulled up the message that had set his phone off in the first place--a new group chat with Noct and some number Prompto didn’t recognize.

 **_Noct:_ ** _I want to throw a welcome party for Luna. Need your help ASAP._

Prompto glanced at the time. He still had three hours left on his shift. Before he could tap out a reply, his phone vibrated in his hand again.

 **_Unknown number:_ ** _Little late for party planning, princess._

 **_Noct:_ ** _Don’t lecture me, Gladio. Just get here._

Prompto blinked at his screen a moment, then glanced up at the giant beside him. “Wait, this is _your_ number?”

Gladio snorted quietly as he tucked his phone away again. “Yeah. His Highness trying to rope you into helping, too, huh?”

“Guess so.” Prompto smiled self-consciously, then, without letting himself think about it too much, asked, “hey, mind if I save it? You know, just in case Noct ever needs rescuing or anything?”

“Go for it.” Gladio’s big shoulders rolled in an easy shrug, then his lips quirked into a tiny smirk. “Probably time I gave it to you anyway. I’ve had yours for ages.”

Prompto’s heart thudded at the base of his throat and he forced himself to swallow it down. Noct’s bodyguard had had his phone number for _ages_? Was that supposed to be a good thing or a bad thing? Like a “cool, you’re the prince’s best friend so I might need to call you if I can’t find him” sort of thing, or a “now I know how to get hold of you if I ever need to invite you to a smackdown outside the Crow’s Nest” thing? He managed to stutter a response as he fiddled with his phone to save Gladio’s number and tell Noct he couldn’t get off early.

Flashing Gladio one last customer service smile, Prompto slipped his phone back into his pocket and turned away. Not even three steps later, his pocket vibrated with the insistent pattern of a call. He winced, glanced around to make sure his supervisor wasn’t around, and dug out the cell again to answer. “Noct, dude, we talked about this. I’m not supposed to answer my phone at work.”

“You work all the time, man,” Noctis replied, that familiar stubborn note in his voice that meant Prompto had already lost the argument. “Luna’s welcome party’s only gonna happen once. You’ve _got_ to come and meet her.”

Prompto wedged himself into a corner between the wall and the poetry shelf and whispered, “The welcome party you just decided to throw? Come on, dude. I can’t. I’m sorry. Gimme three hours and I’ll be there. Promise.”

Noct made a soft, derisive snort. “Get a ride with Gladio. I’ll handle your boss. And _don’t argue_. I need you here for moral support.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Prompto asked, just barely managing to keep his voice at a library-appropriate level. Of course, halfway through the question, he heard the soft click of Noctis hanging up. He groaned and raked his fingers through his hair. Noct was great, and it was _amazing_ having a real friend, but sometimes the prince got a little carried away. He didn’t exactly understand the whole concept of needing to actually hold down a job instead of being able to just find a new part-time gig any time he wanted.

Sucking in a deep breath, Prompto pushed off the wall and hurried back to his cart. Might as well try and get some more work done before whatever Noct was planning to get him out early.

He managed to reshelve seven books before his supervisor rushed over, looking startled and harried. “Hey, Prompto?”

“‘Sup?” Prompto asked as casually as he could manage, glancing up from the spine of the book in his hand with a shaky smile.

She chuckled nervously and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Um. I just...got a call from Prince Noctis? About you?”

Prompto did his best not to wince. What had Noct said? Was he about to get fired? The library was his second-highest-paying job, after the flower shop. He couldn’t really afford to lose it right now. Not if he wanted to start college next semester. “R-really?”

“He said you were needed at the Citadel immediately. Is everything all right?” She frowned at him, playing with her hair again.

Prompto was amazing he managed not to choke on thin air. “Y-yeah. He probably just, uh, needs...help with something. I’m so sorry, Maggie.”

She shook her head. “It’s fine. I’ll finish up your work today.”

“You sure? I can call and tell him I can’t make it.” He was already doing math in his head--how much would he lose out on a short shift?

“The prince of Lucis needs you, Prompto,” Maggie said firmly, placing her hands on his shoulders and squeezing gently. “He sounded upset. You go. I’ll handle everything here.”

Prompto swallowed hard but forced himself to nod. There was no getting out of this, apparently. “Th-thanks. Promise I’ll make it up later.”

She clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth and ushered him toward the back room to clock out without another word.

Gladio straddled a sleek black motorcycle in front of the parking lot, one helmet under his arm and another perched on his knee. He held out the one he’d kept wedged under his elbow and smirked. “Noct said you might need a ride.”

Prompto blinked dumbly at him for a moment before letting out a defeated huff. He hiked his work bag higher on his shoulder, stepped forward, and grabbed the offered helmet. “Course he did. Thanks.”

“No problem.” Gladio’s smirk widened just a little as he yanked his own helmet on. He turned as Prompto climbed onto the motorcycle behind him, started the engine, and tore out of the library parking lot.

Prompto yelped despite himself and clung to the larger man’s torso. He loved the thrill of things like motorcycles and shooting ranges and skydiving, but a little warning would have been nice.

Of course, today was shaping up to be a day completely full of unexpected things. Maybe this surprise welcome party for Lady Lunafreya would go better than anticipated.

Maybe it would help him take his mind off the whole soulmate issue for a little while.

He could hope, at least.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise I'm still alive! Have some awkward boys to hopefully ease the sting of the recent livestream news. <3

Prompto sat on the freezing sidewalk outside Noctis’ apartment building, heels braced on the edge of the curb and head buried in his arms. He’d thought he’d been doing okay. He’d thought more talk of soulmates wouldn’t bother him. But hearing that Noctis--his best friend, the guy he was closest to in the whole world--had not just one but _two_ romantic soulmates and hadn’t bothered to tell him...that hurt so much more than he’d expected.

They’d never really talked about soulmates all that much, of course. But Prompto had always thought one of the reasons they got along so well was that neither of them had Songs.

Now…

First the children’s librarian, now Noctis. Was Prompto seriously the only one in Insomnia who didn’t have a soulmate?

The building door opened and snapped shut behind him, but he didn’t bother looking. It didn’t matter. Noctis was probably too busy with his newfound soulmates to come check up on his best friend. And the worst part was that Prompto couldn’t even blame him. Anyone would pick Ignis and Lunafreya, even if they weren’t soulmates.

“Hey,” Gladio’s voice said, gruff and quiet. After a moment, he tacked on, “you okay, blondie?”

Prompto sucked in a breath and forced his head up, slapping on his best “nothing’s wrong” smile. “No, yeah, I’m good. Just needed some air for a sec, you know?”

Golden eyes bored into him for a long moment before Gladio huffed a sigh, shoulders slumping just a bit. “Yeah, me, too. Mind if I join you?”

“Not like I own the sidewalk.” Prompto laughed to make it clear it was a joke, even though he’d rather be left alone to sulk for a bit. He couldn’t exactly say no to a guy who could crush him without thinking, right?

Gladio muttered his thanks and flopped gracelessly onto the concrete beside Prompto. He leaned back on his hands and turned his head up, squinting into the cold, darkening sky. His breath puffed from his lips in soft white clouds. “Good thing it’s not snowing, huh?”

“Yeah.”

They sat in silence for a while, Gladio staring at the rooftops and Prompto watching the cars zip by.

It was Gladio who finally spoke again. “What do you say let’s get out of here? You’re gonna freeze if you stay out here much longer.”

Prompto--who was fighting extremely hard against the shivers wracking his body--glanced at the bigger man from the corner of his eye. The idea of going back up to Noctis’ apartment made his stomach twist uncomfortably, but he knew Gladio was right. Staying out on the street was a crappy idea in the middle of winter. “I, uh...don’t exactly want to go back up, you know? But go ahead, if you want. I’ll be fine.”

“No one said anything about going back up.” Gladio snorted indelicately and hoisted himself to his feet. “Figure there’s a bar around the corner. Or my place ain’t far, if you’d rather.”

Prompto blinked up at him. He tried and failed to stifle another violent shiver.

“Iris is home,” Gladio tacked on quickly, uncomfortably, “so it’s not like we’d be alone or anything. If you were worried about that.”

Prompto blinked again, but pulled his arms tighter around himself and stood. “Yeah, uh...bar sounds good. I could use a drink after...that.”

“You and me both,” Gladio rumbled under his breath. He hesitated a moment, then shrugged out of his leather motorcycle jacket and dropped it over Prompto’s shoulders. As if he hadn’t done anything out of the ordinary, he turned and gestured for his companion to follow. “C’mon. It’s this way.”

Prompto stood stunned on the sidewalk for a moment, the warm leather weighing down his shoulders. No one had given him a coat like that before, let alone done it so casually--as if it was second nature to just give an almost-stranger a super-nice leather jacket that smelled like woodsy cologne. It was almost like something out of the cheesy rom coms he and Noctis binged on occasion.

Warmth flooded through him that had nothing to do with the coat. Ducking his head to try and hide whatever telltale blush might appear, he pulled the soft, warm leather tighter around him and sprinted to catch up to Gladio.

The bar turned out to be a small hole-in-the-wall joint, packed to the gills with people Prompto vaguely recognized as members of the Crownsguard and Kingsglaive. Despite the current peace between Lucis and Niflheim, security tended to be high this close to the Citadel and Noctis’ apartment.

Gladio smiled and greeted a few of his comrades as he threaded his way toward one of the few empty tables against one wall. He seemed perfectly at-ease in the dim lighting and cacophony of voices.

Prompto followed along as best he could, trying not to draw too much attention to himself. Even after being friends with Noct for so long, there was still a part of him that was always anxious around the guards like this. Like some day one of them would realize he was a fraud and not worthy of the prince’s friendship and that would be that. But at least it was warm in here.

He pulled the jacket off when they reached the table and handed it back to Gladio, who draped it unceremoniously over the back of his chair.

“Hey, Amicitia!” Someone shouted over the noise. “Who’s the new guy? He’s cute.”

Gladio grimaced and flipped off the crowd in general. “Shut up, Nyx! We’re only here ‘cause it’s freezing out.”

“Thought that was your love life,” the guy called back with a laugh before two sets of hands yanked him back into his seat.

Prompto fidgeted in his lap. Maybe this had been a bad idea. Maybe he should have just gone home instead of following Gladio into a bar full of rowdy guards.

“Ignore him,” Gladio muttered, an apology in his voice. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, shoulders sinking. “Want something to drink? My treat.”

“I can pay.” The words were out of Prompto’s mouth before he realized how they might sound. But he hated being patronized, and it had taken him almost a full year to get over Noctis insisting on paying for everything when they hung out. It was instinct to try to avoid being a burden.

Gladio shrugged easily, apparently not at all offended. “It’s not a big deal. What d’you want?”

“Uh.” Prompto glanced around, debating. He wasn’t usually much of a drinker, and something about being in this particular bar made him incredibly self-conscious about choosing a drink. “Surprise me?”

Gladio gave him a curious look. “Sweet or spicy? Any allergies?”

Prompto shook his head and shifted in his chair. “No allergies. And, uh, spicy, I guess?”

“Gotcha. Be right back.” Gladio stood, yanking on the sleeves of his hoodie. He took a step away from the table, then turned back and muttered, “ignore anything the Glaives say. They’re just bored and like picking on me.”

Prompto blinked, trying to formulate a response to that, but Gladio had disappeared toward the bar before he could remember how words worked.

Moments after he vanished, a tall, slender woman dressed all in black except for a bright red jewel at her throat slid effortlessly into Gladio’s abandoned chair. She smiled and leaned one elbow on the table, resting her cheek in the palm of her hand. “Hey, small fry. Quick word of advice? Don’t go breaking Amicitia’s heart on us. He’s had enough trouble with relationships lately and me and the boys are getting tired of helping him through the shitty breakups.”

“Wh-what?” Prompto stared at her, struggling to comprehend what she’d just said. When it finally clicked, he laughed and shook his head. “Oh, no, you’ve got it all wrong. We’re not dating or anything. He’s just…a friend.”

“Uh huh.” The woman eyed him, fingertips tapping against her defined cheekbone.

Prompto felt like squirming again. Gladio _was_ just a friend. Kind of. Not even really a friend. More of an acquaintance who was just being super nice today. Of course, he couldn’t deny the fact that Gladio was _hot_. But he probably had a soulmate, too, and Prompto seriously didn’t want to get involved with something that messy. Especially not after all the other soulmate bullshit today. “Seriously. We’re not dating. I’m not his soulmate or anything, so…just friends.”

“Haven’t found your soulmate yet?” she asked, a surprising amount of compassion in her eyes.

“Don’t have one,” Prompto admitted uncomfortably, fidgeting with his bracelets.

Her eyebrows shot up and a tiny smirk tugged the corner of her lips. “You had that conversation with Amicitia yet?”

Prompto gave her an incredulous look, and she didn’t give him a chance to answer.

“Right. Of course not. Maybe think about it before things get too serious, huh?” She winked and stood, flipping him a lazy salute. “Have fun, kids.”

Prompto watched in downright confusion as she slipped back to her own table with the guy who’d shouted at them earlier. Did she know Gladio’s soulmate? Was she trying to ensure the two of them got together? She’d said Gladio had been having bad luck with relationships lately; maybe he just hadn’t met his soulmate yet and she was trying to weed out the unlikelies.

Maybe he should just leave.

“Hope Crowe didn’t scare you too bad,” Gladio said as he dropped back into his seat, sliding a richly colored cocktail over to Prompto. “She’s got kind of a big-sister complex. Gets out of hand sometimes.”

Prompto shook his head emphatically—partially trying to convince himself—and took a gulp of the drink. Cinnamon and cloves hit his tongue, followed by the burn of Galadhan rum. Just what he needed.

Gladio watched him, hands wrapped around his own sweet-looking cocktail. “You okay?”

“No, yeah, I’m good!” Prompto proclaimed a little too cheerfully. He grinned and wiggled his fingers. “Finally getting feeling back in my hands, dude. It’s great.”

Gladio chuckled and sipped his own drink. “What’d she say?”

“Told me not to break your heart.” Prompto chuckled and shrugged. “She thought we were dating. Isn’t that ridiculous? I mean, you’ve probably got a Song just waiting for a match, and—”

“I don’t,” Gladio interrupted.

Prompto turned to stare at him, unable to hide his shock. “What?”

“I don’t have a Song,” Gladio repeated, remarkably casual about the admission. He shrugged and took another sip of his cocktail. “Far as I know, no one in my family has had one in generations. Guess the gods kind of bred it out of us. Made us better Shields without the distraction or something.”

“Oh.” Prompto frowned back down at his drink, considering. After a long moment, he braved the question, “So your parents…?”

Gladio shrugged again. “Made it work without Songs. People do that.”

“No, of course they do, yeah. Totally.” He chuckled self-consciously and took a slightly too-large gulp of his spiced cocktail. Of course, that resulted in him sputtering and coughing as the rum burned down his throat in unexpected quantities.

“You okay?” Gladio leaned forward to catch his eye, heavy brows drawn together so the scar on his cheek puckered.

Prompto nodded enthusiastically and waved off the concern as he caught his breath. “I’m good. Yeah. Sorry. Just...haven’t met anyone else with a Song before, you know?”

“We’re...not exactly the most common breed,” Gladio agreed with a soft chuckle. He shrugged and sat back, gently turning his glass on the tabletop. Then he took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and slapped on an easy smile. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t be happy, huh? Soulmates aren’t everything.”

“Guess not.” Prompto smiled in return, though he wasn’t entirely certain what he was feeling at the moment. Relief that he wasn’t the only person without a Song? Sadness for Gladio being in the same predicament? Attraction? No, definitely not. Gladio was _way_ out of his league. Must be the booze. “Uh. Thanks. For the drink.”

Gladio’s grin widened a little and he tossed back the rest of his cocktail. “Sure thing. Thanks for indulging me.”

“Any time, dude.”

They fell into silence for a moment as Prompto sipped his drink.

Eventually, Gladio spoke again--small talk about books, mostly--and they fell into a surprisingly easy conversation. They both made their way through another drink and were deep in the middle of a friendly debate about the merits of collecting art books when their phones pinged in unison.

Prompto glanced at the text from Noctis and winced. He was actually enjoying himself here with Gladio. He didn’t want to get stuck in a room with Noctis, Ignis, and Lunafreya making goo-goo eyes at each other. Not yet, at least. He still needed a bit more time to come to terms with the fact that his best friend had _two soulmates_.

“Not ready to go back?”

Prompto chuckled sheepishly and slipped his phone back in his pocket. “Not really. Makes me kind of a bad friend, huh?”

“Nah.” Gladio chuckled and clapped him on the shoulder. “Makes you a poor, tired son of a bitch. I’ll tell him you got sick or something and headed home.”

“Really?” Prompto’s shoulders slumped in relief before he could stop them. He squashed the lingering guilt in his gut as best he could as Gladio nodded. “Thanks, man. I owe you one.”

Gladio shrugged easily and slung his motorcycle jacket over his shoulders. “No sweat. Need a ride home?”

Prompto blinked up at the bigger man. After everything Gladio had already done for him tonight, he was still offering a ride home? Damn. Had this guy fallen out of a romance novel or something? “No, I...I’m good. Thanks. The walk’s not too bad.”

“You sure? It’s freezing.”

“I’ll be fine.” Prompto smiled as he stood, tugging his shirt down self-consciously. “Seriously. Thanks.”

Gladio studied him for another long moment before nodding. “No problem. Look, this might be weird, but...text me when you get home? It’s nothing weird. Just protective instincts and all.”

“Yeah. Sure.” He chuckled and ducked his head. Why the hell did that make him blush of all things? “Night.”

Before Gladio could protest or insist on walking him out or anything, Prompto pushed his way through the crowd toward the door.


	3. Chapter 3

By the time he got home, Prompto was too cold to think. The walk had taken longer than he expected, and it had started snowing just before he turned onto his street. At least his parents had left the heat on before they left for wherever they were. 

He kicked off his boots, padded through the silent house to his room, and flopped onto his bed, wrapping himself in three blankets to try and warm himself back up. 

It wasn’t until his phone beeped with a notification that he realized he’d dozed off in his blanket cocoon. He squirmed just enough to pull the phone out of his pocket and squint blearily at the screen. 

**Gladio:** _ Hey. You make it home okay? Didn’t get caught in the snow, did you? _

Prompto stared at the screen for a moment before his sluggish brain remembered he had promised to text Gladio when he got home. Wincing, he typed out a reply with shivering fingers.  _ Just got home. Sorry. _

He watched the message status change from “sent” to “delivered” to “read.” His breath hitched as the ellipsis danced across the screen. Was Gladio pissed at him for forgetting to text? Had their amiable evening hiding from Noctis and company been a fluke? 

The phone vibrated and beeped in his hand. 

**Gladio:** _No worries. Just glad you made it safe. It’s getting nasty out there._

Prompto let out a breath and snuggled further into his blanket cocoon. No fights. Good. He could focus on warming up and getting some sleep--if his brain would let him. Now that he was starting to regain some cognitive function, he couldn’t stop thinking about Soul Songs and Noctis and how much it  _ hurt _ to be in the dark about it. And Gladio’s insistence that people without Songs could still make relationships work. 

The notification chime made him jump. He nearly dropped the phone into the blanket abyss as he scrambled to pull up the new text. 

**Gladio:** _ Noct missed you, by the way. Says to get better soon.  _

Noctis missed him? But the prince had two brand new soulmates to replace him. 

**Gladio:** _ Bet he’ll be thrilled with your ‘miraculous recovery’ tomorrow. :p  _

Prompto snorted. There was no way Noctis missed him enough to worry about him. Not if the prince hadn’t bothered to text or call yet. All the same, he typed out a response.  _ Haha maybe. Thanks again for covering for me. _

**Gladio:** _ No problem. Iggy and Lunafreya had already left when I got back, so it wasn’t too bad. _

**Gladio:** _ Noct’s really a mess, though. _

Despite his anger with his friend, Prompto’s stomach twisted at that. He swallowed hard and took a deep breath before replying.  _ A mess how? _

It took a little longer for Gladio to reply this time, the ellipsis dancing and stopping about three times before the message came through. 

**Gladio:** _ Just shock, I think. Never thought he already knew his soulmates, let alone that he was so close to them. And it’s not like they realized they had a third soulmate, either. They’re all going to need some time to adjust. Which means all sorts of drama for the two of us. You going to be okay while things get sorted?  _

Prompto read the message through a couple times and considered the question. Was he going to be okay while his best friend came to terms with having two soulmates? Was he going to be okay if Noctis decided they shouldn’t be friends or he didn’t have time for Prompto any more? He’d spent most of his life on his own, but he’d really started getting used to having a friend he could talk to pretty much any time Noctis wasn’t attending royal duties. Could he really go back to being friendless? 

Well, it wasn’t like he had much of a choice.  _ Yeah. I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me. :)  _

**Gladio:** _ Of course I’m going to worry. That’s what friends do.  _

Prompto stared at that for a long, long moment. Friends? Gladio thought they were friends? They’d only just had their first full conversation today, and Prompto had spent a good quarter of it wondering if he was about to be squashed. 

Before he could figure out how he wanted to respond to that, the phone chirped with Noctis’ ringtone. 

“Crap,” Prompto whispered at his screen as the 8-bit theme of Noct’s favorite video game continued. His chest tightened, his mouth went dry, and he hesitated with his finger over the answer button. Could he do this right now? Could he really talk to Noctis when his whole brain was screaming that there was no way the prince could possibly still want to be his friend? 

His thumb twitched and hit the accept button. He mouthed another curse but forced himself to lift the phone to his ear. “Uh, hey buddy. What’s up?” 

“You okay, man?” Noctis asked, sounding exhausted and subdued. It was a tone Prompto knew pretty well from gaming marathons and late-night study sessions. It was the tone Noctis had right before he fell asleep, no matter what he was doing. 

At least the conversation was going to be short, Prompto supposed. He swallowed hard. “Uh, yeah. Just...got, like, a stomach bug or something. No big deal. Should be fine tomorrow. Sorry to bail.” 

“Cool. Listen, Prom, I...I’m sorry about tonight, okay? I didn’t think...it all kind of got…” Noctis paused, murmured something too quiet to hear, then gave a soft, irritated growl. “It got  _ weird_, you know? I didn’t mean to...ugh.” 

__

“‘S’okay,” Prompto assured, even though it didn’t feel okay. He wanted to demand why Noctis hadn’t told him about his Songs, but he swallowed the urge as best he could. No use arguing with his friend when Noct might fall asleep at any moment. 

__

Noctis huffed a sigh. “I know it’s not, okay? I’m not an idiot. I screwed up. And I’m so sorry.” 

__

Prompto chewed on his lip, struggling to find something to say. His instinct was just to insist everything was okay, no matter what he was actually feeling. But that would mean a fight, and he wasn’t sure he had the energy to argue with Noctis. 

__

“Prom?” Noct asked into the silence after a long moment. 

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“Yeah, sorry. I just...we’re cool, dude. Seriously. It’s okay.” Prompto forced himself to smile, hoping it came across in his tone. 

__

The silence on the other end of the line stretched so long that Prompto thought Noctis might have fallen asleep. Just as he was wondering if he should hang up, the prince spoke again.

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“Are you working tomorrow?”

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“Yeah. Got a couple dogs and a shift at the flower shop in the morning.” Prompto sighed and shifted further into his blanket cocoon. The thought of going out and walking dogs after the snow tonight made him cringe.

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Noctis hummed thoughtfully. “Meet me at the arcade after work tomorrow. Just you and me. I owe you a couple games, at least.”

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Prompto winced again. When it came to time with the prince, “you and me” really meant, “you, me, Gladio, and maybe Ignis.” But the gesture was nice enough, he supposed. “Yeah. Sure.”

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“Cool.” Noctis yawned into the phone and mumbled something that sounded vaguely like “g’night,” before hanging up.

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End file.
